Ancient Origin Surnames

This is a list of surnames in which the origin is Ancient.
usage
origin
Romijnsen Dutch
Means "son of Romein" in Dutch.
Romilly English, French
Originally denoted a person who came from any of the various places in northern France called Romilly or from Romiley in England.
Rompa Dutch
Variant of Van Rompa.
Roncalli Italian
From the names of places like Ronco or Ronchi, quite common in northern Italy, derived from ronco meaning "cleared land, terraced land". It was the surname of Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (1881-1963), the pope John XXIII.
Ronchi Italian
From Italian places named Ronchi, derived from ronco meaning "cleared land, terraced land". It is most common in northern and central Italy.
Rooijakkers Dutch
Means "red field", from Dutch rood "red" and akker "field".
Roosa Dutch
From Dutch roos meaning "rose".
Roosevelt Dutch
Means "rose field" from Dutch roos "rose" and veld "field". This was the surname of American presidents Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) and Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945).
Rosa Italian, Catalan
Italian and Catalan form of Rose 1.
Rosales Spanish
Means "rose bushes" in Spanish.
Rosário Portuguese
Means "rosary" in Portuguese. This name was often given to people born on the day of the festival of Our Lady of the Rosary.
Rosario Spanish
Spanish form of Rosário.
Rose 1 English, French, German, Jewish
Means "rose" from Middle English, Old French and Middle High German rose, all from Latin rosa. All denote a person of a rosy complexion or a person who lived in an area abundant with roses. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental, from Yiddish רויז (roiz).
Rose 2 English
Derived from the feminine given name Rose.
Rosenberg German, Swedish, Jewish
Means "rose mountain" in German and Swedish. As a Swedish and Jewish name it is ornamental.
Rosenfeld German, Jewish
Means "field of roses" in German. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.
Rossi Italian
Derived from a nickname for a red-haired person, from Italian rosso, Latin russus meaning "red". This is the most common surname in Italy.
Rossini Italian
Diminutive form of Rossi. A famous bearer was the Italian composer Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868).
Rostami Persian
Derived from the given name Rostam.
Rot German, Jewish
Variant of Roth.
Roth German, Jewish
From Middle High German rot meaning "red". It was originally a nickname for a person with red hair.
Rothenberg German, Jewish
From Middle High German rot meaning "red" and berg meaning "mountain". As a Jewish name it may be ornamental.
Rothschild Jewish
From Middle High German rot "red" and schilt "shield", or Yiddish רויט (roit) and שילד (shild). The famous Rothschild family of bankers took their name from a house with a red shield on it.
Rounds English
Patronymic derived from Middle English rond meaning "round, plump", ultimately from Latin rotundus.
Rousseau French
Diminutive of Roux. A famous bearer was the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) whose ideas influenced the French Revolution.
Roussel French
French form of Russell.
Roux French
Derived from Old French ros meaning "red", from Latin russus, a nickname for a red-haired person.
Rowan Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruadháin.
Rowe 2 English
From the medieval name Row, which is either a variant of Roul or short form of Roland.
Rowland English
Derived from the given name Roland.
Roxas Filipino
Filipino form of the Spanish Rojas.
Royce English
Originally derived from the medieval given name Royse, a variant of Rose.
Roydon English
Originally derived from a place name meaning "rye hill", from Old English ryge "rye" and dun "hill".
Royer French
From French roue meaning "wheel", ultimately from Latin rota, an occupational name for a wheelwright.
Royle English
Originally derived from a place name meaning "rye hill" from Old English ryge "rye" and hyll "hill".
Royston English
Originally taken from an Old English place name meaning "Royse's town". The given name Royse was a medieval variant of Rose.
Rózsa Hungarian
From the feminine given name Rózsa.
Ruane Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruadháin.
Rubio Spanish
Nickname for a person with red hair, from Latin rubeus "red".
Ruf German
From the given name Rolf.
Ruff German, English
From the given name Rolf.
Ruggeri Italian
Derived from the given name Ruggero.
Ruggiero Italian
From the given name Ruggiero.
Ruggles English
From a medieval diminutive of the given name Roger.
Ruiz Spanish
Means "son of Ruy" in Spanish.
Rundström Swedish
Ornamental name derived from Swedish rund (from Latin rotundus) meaning "round" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".
Ruskin 2 English
From a diminutive of the feminine given name Rose.
Rusnak Polish
Means "Russian" in Polish.
Russell English
From a Norman French nickname that meant "little red one", perhaps originally describing a person with red hair.
Russo Italian
Variant of Rossi.
Rusu Romanian
From Romanian rus meaning "Russian".
Rutgers Dutch
Derived from the given name Rutger.
Rutherford Scottish
From the name of places in southern Scotland and northern England, derived from Old English hriðer meaning "cattle, ox" and ford meaning "ford, river crossing".
Rutten Dutch
Derived from the given name Rutger.
Růžička m Czech
Means "little rose" in Czech.
Růžičková f Czech
Feminine form of Růžička.
Ruzsa Hungarian
Dialectical variant of Rózsa.
Ruzzier Italian
From a dialectal variant of Ruggiero. It is typical of northeastern Italy, the area around Trieste.
Ryan Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Riain, or else a simplified form of Mulryan.
Ryba u & m Polish, Czech
Means "fish" in Polish and Czech, an occupational name for a fisher.
Rybár m Slovak
Means "fisher" in Slovak, from ryba meaning "fish".
Rybář m Czech
Czech form of Rybár.
Rybářová f Czech
Feminine form of Rybář.
Rybárová f Slovak
Feminine form of Rybár.
Rybová f Czech
Czech feminine form of Ryba.
Ryder English
Occupational name for a mounted warrior, from Old English ridere meaning "rider".
Rye English
Topographic name. It could be a misdivision of the Middle English phrases atter ye meaning "at the island" or atter eye meaning "at the river". In some cases it merely indicated a person who lived where rye was grown or worked with rye (from Old English ryge).
Ryer German (Anglicized)
Possibly an Americanized form of Reiher.
Ryland English
From various English place names, derived from Old English ryge "rye" and land "land".
Ryley English
Variant of Riley 1.
Sachs German
Originally indicated a person from Saxony (German Sachsen). The region was named for the Germanic tribe of the Saxons, ultimately derived from the Germanic word *sahsą meaning "knife".
Şahin Turkish
Means "hawk" in Turkish (of Persian origin), probably used to refer to someone who was a hawk tamer.
Sala Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Romanian
Occupational name for a worker at a manor house, from the Romance word sala meaning "hall, large room", of Germanic origin.
Salamon Hungarian, Polish
Derived from the given name Salamon or Salomon.
Salcedo Spanish
Derived from Latin salix meaning "willow tree". The name was originally given to one who lived near a willow tree.
Salem Arabic
From the given name Salim.
Salim Arabic
From the given name Salim.
Salinas Spanish
Occupational name for a salt worker or someone who lived bear a salt works, from Spanish salina "salt works, salt mine", ultimately from Latin sal "salt".
Salmon English, French
Derived from the given name Solomon.
Salomon French, German, Jewish
Derived from the given name Salomon or Salomo.
Salucci Italian
From Italian sale meaning "salt".
Salvador Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Salvador.
Salvaggi Italian
Italian form of Savage.
Salvatici Italian
Italian form of Savage.
Salvi Italian
From the given name Salvo or Salvio.
Sampson English
Derived from a medieval form of the given name Samson.
Sams English
Derived from the given name Samuel.
Samsa Hungarian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Sámuel.
Samson English, French
Derived from the given name Samson.
Samuel English, Welsh, French, Jewish
Derived from the given name Samuel.
Samuels English
Derived from the given name Samuel.
Samuelson English
Means "son of Samuel".
Samuelsson Swedish
Means "son of Samuel".
Sánchez Spanish
Means "son of Sancho".
Sanchez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Sánchez.
Sancho Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Sancho.
Sandberg Swedish, Norwegian, Jewish
From Swedish and Norwegian sand (Old Norse sandr) meaning "sand" and berg meaning "mountain" (or in the case of the Jewish surname, from the Yiddish or German cognates).
Sander German, Danish
Derived from the given name Alexander.
Sanders English
Patronymic of the given name Sander, a medieval form of Alexander.
Sanderson English
Means "son of Alexander".
Sandford English
Indicated a person from Sandford, England, which means simply "sand ford".
Sándor Hungarian
Derived from the given name Sándor.
Sands English
From Old English, indicated the original nearer lived on sandy ground.
Sandström Swedish
From Swedish sand (Old Norse sandr) meaning "sand" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".
Sandu Romanian
From the given name Sandu.
Sangster English, Scottish
Occupational name or nickname for a singer, from Old English singan "to sing, to chant".
San Nicolás Spanish
Indicated the original bearer was from a place named after Saint Nicholas.
Sansone Italian
Derived from the given name Sansone.
Santana Spanish, Portuguese
From any of the numerous places named after Saint Anna. A famous bearer is the Mexican-American musician Carlos Santana (1947-).
Santiago Spanish, Portuguese
From various Spanish and Portuguese places called Santiago.
Santini Italian
Diminutive form of Santo.
Santo Italian
Italian form of Santos.
Santoro Italian
Means "all saint's day" in Italian, a nickname for one born on that day.
Santos Portuguese, Spanish
Means "saint" in Portuguese and Spanish, ultimately from Latin sanctus. This was a nickname for a pious person.
Sanz Spanish
From the given name Sancho.
Sargsyan Armenian
Means "son of Sargis" in Armenian.
Sarkisian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Սարգսյան (see Sargsyan).
Sarkissian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Սարգսյան (see Sargsyan).
Sarkisyan Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Սարգսյան (see Sargsyan).
Sarti Italian
Variant of Sarto.
Sartini Italian
Diminutive form of Sarto.
Sarto Italian
Occupational name meaning "tailor" in Italian, from Latin sartor, from sarcire meaning "to mend".
Sartor Italian
Variant of Sarto.
Sartore Italian
Variant of Sarto.
Sartre French
French cognate of Sarto. A famous bearer was the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980).
Sastre Spanish
Spanish cognate of Sarto.
Sault French
French cognate of Soto.
Sauter German
Occupational name for a cobbler, from Latin sutor "sewer, cobbler".
Sauvage French
French form of Savage.
Sauvageau French
French diminutive form of Savage.
Sauvageon French
French diminutive form of Savage.
Sauvageot French
French diminutive form of Savage.
Savage English
English nickname meaning "wild, uncouth", derived from Old French salvage or sauvage meaning "untamed", ultimately from Latin silvaticus meaning "wild, from the woods".
Sawyer English
Occupational name meaning "sawer of wood, woodcutter" in Middle English, ultimately from Old English sagu meaning "saw". Mark Twain used it for the main character in his novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).
Scheinberg Jewish
Ornamental name meaning "beautiful mountain" from German schön "beautiful, good, nice" and berg "mountain".
Schenck German
Variant of Schenk.
Schenk German, Dutch
From Middle High German, Middle Dutch schenke meaning "wine server" (from Old High German scenken "to pour out").
Scherer German
Occupational name for a cutter of cloth or a sheep-shearer, from Old High German skeran "to cut".
Schermer Dutch, Low German
Dutch and Low German form of Schirmer.
Schirmer German
Means "fencer, fencing master", from Old High German skirmen meaning "to defend".
Schlosser German
Occupational name for a locksmith, derived from Old High German sloz meaning "lock".
Schmid German
Variant of Schmidt.
Schmidt German
Occupational name derived from Middle High German smit "smith, metalworker", a cognate of Smith.
Schmitz German
Variant of Schmidt, originating in the Rhine area in western Germany.
Schneider German, Jewish
From German schneider or Yiddish shnayder, making it a cognate of Snyder.
Schnell German
German cognate of Snell.
Schnoor German
Variant of Schnur.
Schnur German, Jewish
From Old High German snuor meaning "rope, cord", an occupational name for a maker of rope.
Schofield English
From various northern English place names, which were derived from Old Norse skáli "hut" and Old English feld "field".
Scholz German
Variant of Schulz.
School Dutch
From Dutch school, ultimately from Latin schola meaning "school", indicating a person who worked at or lived near a school.
Schouten Dutch
Occupational name derived from Middle Dutch schout meaning "sheriff, bailiff".
Schreiber German
German cognate of Scriven.
Schreier German, Jewish
Occupational name for a town crier, from Old High German scrian meaning "to shout, to yell".
Schrijnemakers Dutch
Occupational name for a cabinet maker, from Dutch schrijn "box, container" and maker "maker".
Schröder 1 Low German
Occupational name for a tailor, from Middle Low German schroden meaning "to cut".
Schubert German
Variant of Schuchardt. This name was borne by the Austrian composer Franz Schubert (1797-1828).
Schuchardt German
From Middle High German schuochwürte meaning "shoemaker, cobbler".
Schuhmacher German
From the Middle High German occupational name schuochmacher meaning "shoemaker".
Schuler German
Means "scholar, student" in German, ultimately from Latin schola meaning "school".
Schult Low German
Low German variant of Schulz.
Schulte Low German
Low German variant of Schulz.
Schultz German
Variant of Schulz.
Schulz German
Occupational name derived from Middle High German schultheiße meaning "mayor, judge".
Schulze German
Variant of Schulz.
Schuster German
Means "shoemaker, cobbler", from Middle High German schuoch "shoe" and suter, from Latin sutor "sewer, cobbler".
Schuyler Dutch
Possibly a Dutch form of Schuler.
Schwarz German, Jewish
Means "black" in German, from Old High German swarz. It originally described a person with black hair or a dark complexion.
Schwarzenberg German
Means "black mountain" in German.
Schwarzenegger German
From a place name, derived from Old High German swarz meaning "black" and ekka meaning "edge, corner". A famous bearer of this name is actor and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger (1947-).
Schwenke 2 German
From a given name, a Low German diminutive of Swanhild.
Scola Italian
From Italian scuola meaning "school".
Scott English, Scottish
Originally given to a person from Scotland or a person who spoke Scottish Gaelic.
Scotti Italian
From the medieval given name Francescotto, a diminutive of Francesco.
Scriven English
Occupational name meaning "writer, clerk, scribe" in Old French, derived from Latin scriba.
Sebastiani Italian
From the given name Sebastiano.
Sedláček m Czech, Slovak
Diminutive form of Sedlák.
Sedláčková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Sedláček.
Sedlák m Czech, Slovak
Means "farmer" in Czech and Slovak. A sedlák had more land than a Zahradník or a Chalupník, but less land than a Dvořák.
Sedláková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Sedlák.
Seeger German
From the given name Sieghard.
Seegers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".
Seelen Dutch
Variant of Ceelen.
Segal 1 Jewish
From the Hebrew phrase סגן לויה (segan Lewiyah) meaning "assistant Levite".
Segers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".
Seghers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".
Seidel German
From a diminutive of the given name Siegfried.
Selby English
From the name of a village that meant "willow farm" in Old English.
Selvaggio Italian
Italian form of Savage.
Sempers English
From the name of various towns named Saint Pierre in Normandy, all of which commemorate Saint Peter.
Serafim Portuguese
Derived from the Latin given name Seraphinus.
Serafin Polish, Italian
Derived from the given name Serafin or Serafino.
Serafini Italian
Derived from the given name Serafino.
Sergeant English, French
Occupational name derived from Old French sergent meaning "servant", ultimately from Latin servire "to serve".
Sergeev m Russian
Alternate transcription of Russian Сергеев (see Sergeyev).
Sergeeva f Russian
Alternate transcription of Russian Сергеева (see Sergeyeva).
Sergeyev m Russian
Means "son of Sergey".
Sergeyeva f Russian
Feminine form of Sergeyev.
Serra Italian, Portuguese, Catalan
Italian, Portuguese and Catalan cognate of Sierra.
Ševčík m Czech, Slovak
Occupational name derived from Czech and Slovak švec meaning "shoemaker, cobbler".
Ševčíková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Ševčík.
Severijns Dutch
Derived from the Latin given name Severinus.
Séverin French
Derived from the given name Séverin.
Severins Dutch
Derived from the Latin given name Severinus.
Sevriens Dutch
Derived from the Latin given name Severinus.
Seward 1 English
Derived from the given name Sigeweard.
Seward 2 English
Means "swineherd" from Old English su "sow, female pig" and hierde "herdsman, guardian".
Seward 3 Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Suaird.
Seymour 1 English
From Saint Maur, a French place name, which commemorates Saint Maurus.
Shah Persian, Urdu
Derived from Persian شاه (shah) meaning "king".
Shain Jewish
Means "beautiful, handsome" in Yiddish, from German schön.
Shannon Irish
From Irish Ó Seanáin meaning "descendant of Seanán".
Sharma Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Assamese, Gujarati, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Nepali
Means "joy, shelter, comfort" in Sanskrit.
Sharp English
Nickname for a keen person, from Old English scearp "sharp".
Sharpe English
Variant of Sharp.
Shaw 2 Scottish
From a given name or byname that was derived from Gaelic sitheach meaning "wolf" (Old Irish sídach).
Shea Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Séaghdha.
Shearer English
English cognate of Scherer.
Sheehy Irish
Variant of McSheehy.
Sheenan Irish
Variant of Shannon.
Sheinfeld Jewish
Ornamental name derived from German schön "beautiful, good, nice" and feld "field".
Shelby English
Variant of Selby.
Shepherd English
Occupational name meaning "shepherd, sheep herder", from Old English sceaphyrde.
Sherazi Urdu
Urdu form of Shirazi.
Sherburn English
Denoted a person hailing from any of the various places called Sherborne or Sherburn in England, derived from Old English scir "bright" and burna "spring, fountain, stream".
Sherman 1 English
Means "shear man", referring to someone who used shears in his line of work, such as a sheep-shearer.
Shevchenko Ukrainian
Derived from Ukrainian швець (shvets) meaning "shoemaker".
Shevchuk Ukrainian
Derived from Ukrainian швець (shvets) meaning "shoemaker".
Shine 1 English
Means "beautiful, attractive" from Old English sciene.
Shirazi Persian
Originally denoted someone who came from the city of Shiraz, located in southern Iran. The city's name is possibly of Elamite origin.
Shirley English
From an English place name, derived from Old English scir "bright" and leah "woodland, clearing".
Shriver German
German cognate of Scriven.
Shvets Ukrainian
Means "shoemaker" in Ukrainian.
Sidney English
Originally derived from various place names in England meaning "wide island", from Old English sid "wide" and eg "island". Another theory holds that it comes from the name of a town in Normandy called "Saint Denis", though evidence for this is lacking.
Siebert German
Derived from the given name Siegbert.
Siegel 2 German
Derived from the diminutive of Old German given names beginning with the element sigu meaning "victory".
Sieger German
From the given name Sieghard.
Siegert German
Derived from the given name Sieghard.
Siekert German (Rare)
Derived from the given name Sieghard.
Siemon German
Variant of Simon.
Sienkiewicz Polish
Patronymic from the given name Sienko, an old diminutive of Szymon. This was the surname of the Polish writer Henryk Sienkiewicz (1846-1916).
Sierra Spanish
Originally indicated a dweller on a hill range or ridge, from Spanish sierra "mountain range", derived from Latin serra "saw".
Sierżant Polish
Polish cognate of Sergeant.
Sikora Polish
Means "tit (bird)" in Polish.
Silje Norwegian
Derived from the given name Silje.
Silva Portuguese, Spanish
From Spanish or Portuguese silva meaning "forest". This is the most common surname in Portugal and Brazil.
Silveira Portuguese
Means "forests" in Portuguese.
Silver English
From a nickname for a person with grey hair, from Old English seolfor "silver".
Silvestri Italian
Derived from the given name Silvester.
Šimek m Czech
Derived from the name Šimek, a diminutive of Šimon.
Simen English (Rare)
From the given name Simon 1.
Simeonov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Simeon".
Simeonova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Simeonov.
Šimić Croatian
Means "son of Šime".
Šimko m Slovak
From a diminutive of the given name Šimon.
Šimková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Šimek or Šimko.